India’s signing of memorandums of understanding worth lakhs of crores reflects global confidence in India’s maritime capabilities, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday. The PM, speaking at the Maritime Leaders Conclave in Mumbai, added that the presence of stakeholders at the event symbolises their shared commitment.

With a quarter of the 21st century in the rearview mirror, PM Modi emphasised that the next 25 years are even more critical, and India’s focus is on the blue economy and sustainable coastal development, before reiterating the government’s strong emphasis on green logistics, port connectivity, and coastal industrial clusters.

“Shipbuilding is now among India’s top priorities,” averred PM Modi. India is now accelerating its efforts to scale new heights in shipmaking. PM Modi highlighted that India has granted infrastructure asset status to large ships, a policy decision that will open new avenues for shipbuilders. This will also provide new financing options, prune interest costs, and facilitate access to credit.

To give a fillip to the shipbuilding sector, the PM said the government will invest close to ₹70,000 crore, which will enhance domestic capacity, promote long-term financing, support the development of greenfield and brownfield shipyards, build advanced maritime skills, and generate millions of jobs for youth. He added that this initiative will also unlock new investment opportunities for all stakeholders.

This year, the government has taken major steps in the direction of implementing next-generation reforms in the maritime sector. “The colonial shipping laws, over a century old, have been replaced with modern and futuristic legislation suited for the 21st century”, PM Modi said. The Merchant Shipping Act has been globally aligned with international conventions, the PM said. This alignment has enhanced trust in safety standards, improved ease of doing business, and reduced government intervention, he added.

The PM also informed the congregation that India’s ports are now being counted among the most efficient in the developing world, and in many cases, are also outperforming ports in the developed world. He shared a host of performance statistics, noting that the average container dwell time in India has fallen to less than three days, which is better than in several developed nations. He highlighted that the average vessel turnaround time has dropped from 96 hours to 48 hours, making Indian ports more competitive and attractive to global shipping lines.

PM Modi also highlighted that India has shown significant improvement in the World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index, and the number of Indian seafarers has increased from 1.25 lakh to over three lakhs, exemplifying India’s growing strength in maritime human resources. “Today, India ranks among the top three countries globally in terms of seafarer numbers.”

The PM also emphasised that, through the Maritime India Vision, over 150 new initiatives have been introduced. These efforts have nearly doubled the capacity of major ports, greatly cut down turnaround times, and invigorated cruise tourism. PM Modi also mentioned that cargo transported via inland waterways has surged by more than 700%, and the number of operational waterways has grown from three to thirty-two. Additionally, he noted that the net annual surplus of Indian ports has increased nine times over the last ten years.